There’s a deeply troubling ongoing pattern in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s approach to land and water policies in California involving closed doors, backroom deals and disingenuous — or more often than not — inadequate community engagement to move projects forward.
Circumventing guardrails and sidestepping public opinion have become the norm with the Delta Conveyance Project and voluntary water agreements, all while the Newsom administration continued its attempts to fast-track California Forever — another potential boondoggle.
Billionaires, lobbyists and administrative insiders should not be shaping California’s future; Californians should. This pattern of bad governance is preventing the people of California from receiving the transparency and due process they deserve, along with the chance to weigh in on decisions that directly impact their communities.
Who exactly is bearing the cost for these projects? The rest of us.
California Forever, for example, wants to bring as many as 400,000 people to Solano County, creating a free-for-all in the absence of established water rights, stressing a state system that is already oversubscribed and imbalanced. This saga has unfolded as Native American tribes continue to fight for their long-denied water rights and against regulators accused of being discriminatory.
And don’t forget the fisheries. For three consecutive years, commercial salmon fishing was shut down due to excessive diversions, raising water temperatures and killing salmon eggs which cost the industry $45 million in 2023 alone. It was only this year that salmon fishing has reopened, yet the policies that led to its suspension remain in place, with voluntary agreements poised to only make things worse.
Water policies and proposals like the voluntary agreements and the Delta tunnel project only add to the strain, and now California Forever is poised to add even more imbalance, with tech-backed billionaires seeking water rights in a system that already cannot maintain its commitments.
The same water flow decisions determine what is left for farmers within the Delta and Delta-adjacent areas who are already losing land and water supply. All of this is happening without the input of Californians. Communities have a right to create economic and development plans from the ground up, not at the behest of the ultra-rich.
Tribes and impacted communities have a right to a seat at the table when their livelihoods are on the line.
Unfortunately, from watching negotiations in Sacramento over water and land throughout the last seven years, the secrecy and backroom deals being conducted by the Newsom administration come as no surprise. Still, the disappointment is immense for tribes and environmental groups that have made attempt after attempt to ensure transparency and public review.
Land and water policies shaped by a few powerful voices, while excluding many, do not reflect the track record expected of a presidential hopeful.
Billionaires, lobbyists and administrative insiders should not be the only ones shaping California’s future. From decisions regarding the Delta Conveyance Project and voluntary water agreements to what unfolded this year with California Forever, the public must have a fair say in how our land and water is used.
Having a voice in our own future is not a courtesy but a right.
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By Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla and Gary Mulcahy